A popular sandbar in the middle of picturesque Silver Lake provided wonderful relief from a summer heat wave for West Bend resident, Brieann Albiero and her fiancé, Nick. The couple joined a host of other boaters on Saturday, July 15th, anchoring their vessel in chest-deep water. It was a perfect way to spend the afternoon together, that is, until Brieann felt her platinum & diamond engagement ring suddenly slip off her hand into the water’s murky depths. Disbelief was followed by distress and tears as the reality of her loss hit home.
Try as they might, the ring evaded the couple’s search efforts. A few days later they arranged for a SCUBA diver to scour the lake bottom in the evening with a flashlight. But even this valiant pursuit proved unsuccessful.
I received an email inquiry from Brieann on July 20th. She located me on The Ring Finder’s website and reached out in hopes I might be able to assist. We arranged to meet on location a couple evenings later. After loading our gear into the boat, hopes were high as we made our way towards the search area. But when we arrived, the water all looked the same to Brieann and Nick. It was difficult knowing just where they had been anchored on the day of the loss and nobody had GPS coordinates or land features for reference. Inwardly I prepared myself for a long night and for the very real possibility of multiple days of searching. It’s like that sometimes.
Our first night proved unsuccessful. I consoled Brieann, “Don’t lose hope. Your ring is there, we just need to get over top of it.” But I could sense her disappointment.
Almost a week later, we tried again. This time, we worked off some memories of where other boats had been anchored in relation to their own. Nick assisted me by placing my marker buoys in an area of the sand bar consistent with their best recollection. It was a long shot, a very long shot! 
Evidence of parties gone by, bottle caps and pull tabs chirped their presence in the headset of my trusty SCUBA-rated Excalibur detector. But barely an hour into the search, a pure, repeatable tone consistent with platinum invited further investigation. When I pulled up my search scoop, Brieann’s precious engagement ring lay nestled on top of the sand and shells! And Brieann’s smile screams the rest of the story!
If you or someone you know has lost a ring, encourage them to contact The Ring Finders. We find what may be thought lost forever. It would be an honor to add that person’s smile to our list of happy clients.
All the best, Brieann and Nick. May the story of your ring continue for many, many happy years together.
